Redevelopment, expansion of Boston colleges

The first college in the country was established near Boston and since then the area has been a hub for higher education.

These higher education establishments build internationally renowned medical centers, research labs, cultural nodes, and innovation incubators. Here are some of the most recent college projects.

Pictured: An operator's view from the cab of a 100-foot crane during construction of the Christian Science Church in 1969.
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David L. Ryan/Globe Staff

Framingham State University

Framingham State University is in the process of acquiring nearly 150 acres of state-owned land around the Stearns (upper top) and Brackett (bottom ) reservoirs in Framingham and Ashland. The land will be used for educational purposes and will be open to public access.

The expansion is worrying residents along the shoreline who fear rowdy college students will disrupt the nature.

The transfer from the Department of Conservation and Recreation to Framingham State is part of DCR efforts to give control of unused properties to local groups.
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Harvard Business School, William Rawn Associates, & Reed Hilderbrand

Harvard University

Harvard University is ready to unveil a new $100 million, seven-story building on its business school campus in Allston.

Construction on the Tata Hall, which features 180 dorm-style beds for the Business School’s Executive Education program and academic space, began in December 2011.

The building is named after Tata Trusts and Companies, whose $50 million donation helped pay for its construction.
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Bridgewater State University

Bridgewater State University

Bridgewater State University opened a new residence hall, named George A. Weygand Hall, in mid-November.

The dormitory, which will house 500 students, was envisioned by the Boston office of Perkins+Will.

The new highly sustainable “living learning” residence hall is designed to encourage students to collaborate and share interests, said the university in a statement.
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Boston University

The school recently unveiled its latest campus construction plans, proposing to build two new 11-story academic buildings, expand other academic buildings and renovate an existing dormitory.

Wellesley College officials are drafting a campus-wide development plan that calls for spending up to $550 million on the renovation and expansion of existing buildings over the next 12 to 15 years.

The newly-released “Wellesley 2025 Consolidated Program Plan” report sketched out four proposals, dividing potential projects into a “base plan,” “expanded plan,” and two “comprehensive plans.” The college will decide as it goes along which expanded and comprehensive plan projects are addressed.

Among the projects in the base plan are the complete overhaul of Pendleton West, including a 12,000-square-foot addition for classrooms, studios, and rehearsal spaces, and the conversion of the now-vacant space in the Schneider student center and Physical Plant buildings for student services and administrative uses.

The college will host town-hall style meetings to share information about the plan. A W2025 website is also being developed.
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The science and engineering building project was approved by the Boston Redevelopment Authority on Nov. 14. The proposed 197,00-square-foot Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building will house classrooms, research areas, offices, a cafe, and other student space.

Dates for breaking ground at Carter Playground, a city-owned park and playground with basketball and tennis courts and baseball and football fields, have not been set. Renovations include a makeover and expansion of the grounds and multipurpose fields. Northeastern is donating its Camden Lot, appraised at $8.9 million, for expansion of the fields. Tobin said the project will cost the university around $15 million, and the park will remain city-owned.

The university also plans to enable more Roxbury students to attend Northeastern and increase the hiring of neighborhood residents and businesses.
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Wikimedia Commons

Harvard University

Harvard University plans to build a long-awaited campus center that will open in 2018 and will be named after a couple who recently gave an undisclosed, but “significant” amount of money toward the project.

The Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Campus Center will be created from a renovation and remodeling of the Holyoke Center, a five-decade-old, 10-story 360,000 square-foot building centrally-located on Harvard’s main campus in Cambridge, university officials said.

Construction is anticipated to start in 2016. University officials declined to say how much the project is expected to cost.
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Suffolk University

Suffolk University

Suffolk University broke ground on a a new campus building at 20 Somerset St., which will offer general-use and science classrooms, a cafeteria, as well as indoor and outdoor lounging areas.

The groundbreaking was commemoratedby a ceremony with Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino and university officials on Nov. 14.

The $62 million building is slated to open in the summer of 2015, according to a statement on the university’s website.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino praised the project earlier this year, saying in the statement that “through institutional planning we’re encouraging colleges and universities to look at their assets strategically. Suffolk University’s decision to consolidate classroom space in a new building closer to the core of their campus benefits the institution and their neighbors in Beacon Hill.”

Mark Lorenz for the Boston Globe

UMass Lowell

UMass Lowell has opened University Suites, a 148,000-square-foot, $54 million residence hall for 472 students that includes 88 four- and six-bed suites that feature living rooms and kitchenettes.

The dorm’s attractions include a modern design, suite-style rooms, multiple common areas, and central air-conditioning

Students pay $4,650 per semester to live in the new building, which houses upperclassmen, including those enrolled in the Commonwealth Honors Program. Traditional dorm rooms on campus cost $3,547 a semester.

The first-floor dining area, called the Hawk’s Nest Cafe, serves grab-and-go meals during the day and Asian-fusion cuisine in the evening. A Red Mango and Starbucks are also located in the building.
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Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Salem State Univesity

Salem State Univeristy is set to officially open a new $74 million, 122,000-square-foot library. This library, the Frederick E. Berry Library will allow the university to use more space and attract more students.

This new library will hold 1,000 study seats, 150 personal computers, and 12 group study rooms. It will also be home to the university's writing center, honors program, academic advising, learning skills support, computer testing lab, and disability services.

The university had been using an interim library for about 6 years. Pictured is an outside view of the new library.
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Handout

Tufts University

Tufts University is tackling more than 60 construction projects this summer, including substantial renovations to an auditorium and academic building, and the completion of a sailing pavilion.

The school said in a statement today that the Cohen Auditorium, which is part of the Aidekman Arts Center, will get a new ceiling and floor, as well as seating and lighting. The stage will be handicapped accessible, and workers plan to install a new roof.

According to the statement, classrooms and offices are being added to a section of Halligan Hall, and the front of the building will be restored.

Crews also expect to finish the Lawrence S. Bacow and Adele Fleet Bacow Sailing Pavilion on Upper Mystic Lake, which is named after the former Tufts president and his wife. The pavilion will house a carpenter’s shop, 44 boats, locker rooms, an observation deck, and a space to hold functions.

Rudi Pizzi, the director of projects administration, said in the statement that all the construction—no matter how small—is essential work that needs to be done.

“It is very important for the university to maintain its existing buildings, site, infrastructure and equipment,” Pizzi said. “As we make these improvements, our investment through deferred maintenance will create a better environment for all in Tufts community.”

Other smaller scale projects include: the data center at the Tufts Administration Building is undergoing a complete renovation; crews will repair windows and the roof, as well as install mechanical systems in the Dewick-MacPhie Dining Center; Dowling Hall is undergoing exterior repairs.

Boston Conservatory

Boston Conservatory

The Boston Conservatory is constructing a three-story, 20,000-square-foot building at 132 Ipswich St. in Boston.

When completed, the building will house a orchestra rehearsal hall, dance studios, and instructional and student service areas.
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Boston College

Boston College

Boston College is renovating its historic St. Mary’s Hall, which is the second-oldest building on the Chestnut Hill campus, according to a statement from the university.

Crews will convert part of the building into academic space for the communications and computer studies departments, as well as for the Woods College of Advanced Studies. The building will reopen in January 2015.

Rebecca Blum/Berklee College of Music

Berklee College of Music

Berklee College of Music is finishing construction on a 155,000-plus square-foot, 16-story building this summer. The building, which is at 160 Massachusetts Avenue, will include 370 beds for student housing; this means that the college will be able to house all of its incoming students for the first time.

The building will house a 400-seat dining hall, recording studios, an evening performance venue, a ground floor retail space, practice rooms, and a small fitness center.

Ryan Catalani for Boston.com

Emerson College

Emerson is in the midst of building its Los Angeles campus, according to college officials. The new center will cost $85 million.

Kevin Bright, the senior executive director and founding director of the LA campus, said that the campus will be solely comprised of a 100,000 square-foot, 10-story building. He called the facility “a campus inside of a building.” The building, which is scheduled to open on January 15, will include 200 dorm rooms, an executive screening room, a teleconferencing room for distance learning, post-production editing studios, and an open space with trees, balconies, and barbeque pits.

“I think the potential for the college is huge,” Bright said in a phone interview.

Emerson also announced in early June that it plas to build a multistory building to house a 750-student dorm and other facilities in a downtown alley.

In a letter of intent filed with the Boston Redevelopment Authority on June 5, Emerson associate vice president Margaret A. Ings wrote that the space houses the Estate nightclub at 1 and 2 Boylston Place, Sweetwater Cafe at 3 Boylston Place, the Tavern Club at 4 Boylston Place, and two other structures owned by the Tavern Club at 5 and 6 Boylston Place.

Flickr

Harvard University

This summer, the school will continue to renovate two of its dormitories, also known as “houses,” and in August, crews will begin to convert the Inn at Harvard into temporary student housing.

The university is expanding and restoring its museum at 32 Quincy St., to “protect and preserve Harvard’s world-class collection and enhance the teaching and research mission of the Harvard Art Museums,” according to the university’s website.

The university is also continuing construction on Tata Hall, a new residential and educational building for the Harvard Business School.

Joshua Harker/AP

Northeastern University

Northeastern University recently announced that it will expand Snell Library’s Digital Media Commons by adding a 3-D printing facility, upgraded studios, and new audio/visual equipment. The university is also constructing a “simulation laboratories suite,” which will “facilitate healthcare instruction using computer-driven mannequins and lifelike models, allowing faculty and students to replicate clinical symptoms and modulate realistic human responses,” according to a statement on the university’s website.

“These resources will offer students rich learning environments that provide a range of academic benefits, including group collaboration, academic instruction, access to cutting-edge technology, and experiential education,” Stephen W. Director, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, said in the statement.

Boston Redevelopment Authority

Boston University School of Law

Boston University’s 18-story law school building will be renovated and expanded, as part of the school’s summer expansion plan.

The university plans to rehabilitate the tower’s exterior and renovate about 150,000 square feet inside, as well as plans to build a 95,000 square foot addition on the building’s west side and atop an existing one-story boiler plant building.

In addition to the law school renovation, BU is gutting the first floor of one of its buildings to make room for the Kilachand Honors College; crews will renovate the facilities and convert a dining room into a student lounge and study area.

Work will continue on the Admissions Reception Center, which is slated to open in January 2014. The center will include a 150-seat auditorium, and a new landscaped pedestrian plaza.

“The whole city and campus seems to empty during the summer, so this is the perfect time for us to work on these projects,” David Flynn, assistant vice president of construction services at Facilities Management & Planning told BU Today. “Especially large projects that have a direct impact on campus, like the Law School. Through late August, we will be doing as much work as we possibly can so that we can wrap up many of the projects by the time students return.”
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Clough Harbor and Associates

Boston University

Crews are installing the AstroTurf for the new athletic field. According to the story in BU Today, the project will double BU’s athletic field capacity.

The expansion includes an 110,000-square-foot athletic and recreational field and a 350-space parking garage underneath the field along the western edge of its campus in Allston.

Brighton-based New Balance has pledged $3m to help fund the $24-million project.
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Boston Redevelopment Authority

Harvard University

Harvard University’s vision to transform the northern section of Allston into a thriving, revitalized area with academic space, student housing, and entertainment facilities is one step closer to realization after a developer filed a proposal to build a 350,000 square-foot mixed use project in the Barry’s Corner section.

The developer, Samuels & Associates, hopes to start construction in fall 2013 and finish the project in about two years, according to a copy of the 452-page plan.

The university’s plan to relocate its campus services building—which houses mailing, information technology, police training , recycling, storage, and transporation fleet management departments—to 219 Western Ave. in Allston was approved by the city at a Boston Redevelopment Authority board meeting on March 14.

In October, Harvard unveiled a 10-year master plan framework for the Boston neighborhood. That long-term plan features nine new projects, including a new basketball arena, a refurbished football stadium, a hotel and conference center, and new business school buildings. The university said it planned to submit the project to the city of Boston in July 2013.

Harvard began pushing for an expansion in Allston in the late 1980s, and it now owns 359 acres in Allston, nearly double the size of its Cambridge campus.
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The new purchase will be used for faculty and staff offices and student resources, said the college.

The 17,000-square-foot building is located between Marlborough Street and Commonwealth Avenue.
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Umass

UMass Boston

The University of Massachusetts Boston will begin construction on a $113 million academic building in the upcoming weeks, a project that is expected to finish in 2015, according to UMass Boston officials.

The 181,000-square foot building will house classrooms, a theater, a recital hall, studios, teaching labs, student lounges, and a cafeteria, according to a statement released by the university. Three academic programs—art, chemistry, and performing arts—will be based in the new building. According to officials, plans for the building began in 2010.

Pictured: A rendering of the front (east, ocean-side) view of General Academic Building No. 1. The Campus Center is on the left.
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The college released a revised development plan that proposes to mix retail, residential and hotel buildings into a 180-acre section of North Allston that will also host a new basketball stadium, a science complex and several academic buildings for Harvard Business School.

Overall, the plan includes nine renovation and construction projects that will unfold over the next 10 years.

Harvard’s master plan also calls for a renovation of the Harvard football stadium.
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Patrick D. Rosso for Boston.com

UMass Boston

The steel structure of the science building at UMass Boston is up and the entire $155 million facility will be ready to open in the fall of 2014, said officials. The new building, near the entrance of the Columbia Point school, will be a six-story structure that will include dry and wet research laboratories along with support space, an infant-cognition lab, undergraduate biology teaching labs and two research centers.

The building is part of several projects in the university’s Master Plan, which was developed in 2007. The school has created a web page for those who would like updates.
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MIT is spending about $700 million to redevelop eight of its properties in Kendall Square, adding to the transformation of what is largely a commercial zone to a more pedestrian-friendly, lively neighborhood where people would live as well as work.

City officials hope this will prompt other developers to follow MIT’s lead and add buildings with a range of activities that would contribute to a lively street life.
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Bill Greene/Globe Staff

Boston University

The school recently bought three on-campus streets near Kenmore to put in a pedestrian mall.

Officials removed 134 metered parking spaces from three streets within Boston University’s campus and near Kenmore Square over the summer. In mid-June, the university signed a deal to pay the City of Boston $11.45 million to buy the roads.

The Boston Globe

Harvard University

Harvard University, whose development stops and starts have frustrated its North Allston neighbors for years, said it wants to begin construction in 2013 of a Harvard-Square-like retail and housing complex to anchor its sweeping transformation of the neighborhood.

Pictured: A view of the front of the new Harvard Innovation Lab located in Allston.
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David L. Ryan/Globe Staff

Harvard University

The university expects to resume work in 2014 on its planned science complex in Allston, the single largest investment in a science facility the 375-year-old Ivy League institution has ever made.

Work on the science center was put on hold indefinitely in 2009 as the university’s endowment was rocked by the recession.
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Jeremy C. Fox for Boston.com

Tufts University

The university's medical center recently announced that its Floating Hospital for Children will establish a new cancer treatment institute to develop individualized treatments for children whose cancers do not respond to traditional treatments.

The Newman-Lakka Institute for Personalized Cancer Care will also be the first to build a centralized database to track treatment outcomes in these cases, allowing doctors to share information and offer treatment to thousands more children with rare and recurring tumors.
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